ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment
3805 Divyangjans to receive assistive devices at ‘Samajik Adhikarita Shivir’ for Divyangjan at Jamnagar, Gujarat tomorrow
A total of 6225 aids and assistive devices valued at Rs. 3.57 crore will be distributed free of cost to 3805 Divyangjan at Block/Panchayat levels by following the SOP for COVID-19 Pandemic at the ‘Samajik Adhikarita Shivir’ in Jamnagar, Gujarat tomorrow.
The Shivir has been organised by the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities  in association with ALIMCO and District Administration for distribution of aids and assistive devices to ‘Divyangjan’ under the ADIP Scheme of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India.
The inaugural function will be attended virtually by the Chief Minister of Gujarat Shri Vijay Rupani, as the Chief Guest. Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Dr. Thaawarchand Gehlot, will preside over the function.
Several other dignitaries including Gujarat's Minister for Rural Development, Fishery and Transport Shri Ranchhod Bhai Phaladu, State’s Minister for Social Justice & Empowerment Shri Ishwar Bhai Parmar, Minister of State for Food and Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Cottage Industries Shri Dharmendra Singh Jadeja, Jamnagar MP Smt. Poonamben Madam and Navsari MP Shri C.R. Patil alongwith senior officials from DEPwD, ALIMCO and District Administration will also be present virtually/in person during the function.
Ministry of Education
A nation-wide painting competition to be organised in 500 Kendriya Vidyalayas on ‘Parakram Diwas’
Key highlights
-23rd January 2023 is being observed as ‘Parakram Diwas’, the birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose to inspire students on life of the great leader and instill in them spirit of patriotism.
-The theme of the competition is about becoming an 'Exam Warrior ' based on the book written by the Prime Minister.
-A total of 50,000 students expected to take part
In the run to the Pariksha Pe Charcha 2023, a unique initiative to cope up with examination stress amongst the students, a nation-wide painting competition is being organised in 500 different Kendriya Vidyalayas  across the country on 23rd January,2023. The day is observed as ‘Parakram Diwas’, the birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose to inspire students on life of the great leader and instill in them spirit of patriotism.
To encourage creative expressions of students, various activities are being organized by Ministry of Education in the schools across the country including painting competition tomorrow.
The painting competition is expected to see diverse participation from students of various CBSE schools, students from State Boards, Navodaya Vidyalayas and Kendriya Vidyalayas in this unique creative expression of ideas. The theme of the competition is about becoming an 'Exam Warrior ' based on the book written by the Prime Minister.
A total of 50 thousand students are expected to take part in this painting competition across the country. The nodal Kendriya Vidyalaya, where the event is to be organized will have 100 students from different schools as participants in this competition. Broadly the 70 students have been invited from nearby schools of State Board and CBSE schools in the district, 10 participants would be from Navodaya Vidyalaya and 20 students from nodal KVs as well as nearby KVs, if any in the district.
Five best entries will be awarded with a set of books on freedom fighters and topics of national importance and a certificate. Students and teachers are looking forward for this painting competition enthusiastically.
Ministry of Home Affairs
Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah and Singapore Home Minister meeting held today; discuss bilateral and regional issues of mutual interest.
The Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah and the Minister for Home Affairs and Law of Singapore, Mr. K. Shanmugam met in New Delhi today. Both leaders discussed bilateral and regional issues of mutual interest during the meeting.
Union Home Minister Shri. Amit Shah noted that India-Singapore relations are based on shared values and approaches, economic opportunities and convergence of interest on key issues. He further noted that following the visit of the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to Singapore last year a new momentum was added to the Strategic Partnership between the two countries. Home Minister Shanmugam, on his part, also emphasized the importance Singapore attaches to its relations with India.
The two leaders also exchanged views and concerns on the challenges posed by terrorism and extremism. They agreed to strengthen the existing bilateral institutional mechanisms on security issues. Both sides also agreed to enhance cooperation in dealing with trans-national organized crimes including drug trafficking and economic offences.
Singapore Minister K. Shanmugam invited Shri Amit Shah to visit Singapore.
Ministry of Electronics & IT
7 New Internet Exchange Nodes to boost connectivity & Digital economy in Uttar Pradesh
Setting up of Internet exchange is a part of PM Modi's Digital India vision of connecting all Indians with Open, Safe & Trusted Internet - Rajeev Chandrasekhar
User of Braj region or Bundelkhand region will have the same internet capability of user experience as the Metro City user
Giving impetus to Internet connectivity and Digital Economy, 7 new Internet exchange nodes will be launched in Uttar Pradesh on 23rd December, jointly by Minister of State for Electronics, Information Technology and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar and Minister of State, Law and Justice, Shri SP Singh Baghel.
These nodes will be located at Meerut, Agra, Kanpur, Lucknow, Prayagraj, Varanasi & Gorakhpur. The Minister is expected to launch all these exchange nodes physically from Agra while people and dignitarIes from other 6 locations shall join virtually in the inaugural ceremony. Till date only one Internet exchange node was operating in UP at Gautam Buddha Nagar. With 7 new Internet exchanges, Internet ecosystem shall be further strengthened in the state, which is taking fast strides in leveraging technology for transforming the lives of people.
Internet exchange improves Internet performance and speed for consumers. Ensures better resilience, stability, efficiency & quality of Internet at a lower cost.
It benefits the Netizens and promotes the arrival of more Internet service providers thereby expanding the digital market. “Setting up of Internet exchange is a part of PM Modi's Digital India vision of connecting all Indians with Open, Safe & Trusted Internet”, mentioned Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar in an event recently.
Under the Narendra Modi Govt. number of broadband users have increased from 250 million to approximately 840 million. The data consumption has seen an increase of 189 times .
Proactive and favourable Government policies have increased Internet Service Providers from approx. 221 to approx. 1556  over the last 7 years since 2014.
Uttar Pradesh is taking a lead in this direction by getting 07 new Internet Exchange points in addition to an existing Internet Exchange at Noida. These Exchange points are covering all zones of UP so a user of Braj region or Bundelkhand region will have the same internet capability of user experience as the Metro City user.
Last 19 months have witnessed unprecedented digitalization in all sectors of economy leading to an increased demand for digital products and services. A lot of services like education, healthcare, commerce have shifted online and a lot of professionals worked from home during the pandemic. Internet Offered the only platform to connect with people and access services. The inauguration of 7 new Internet exchanges shall enable people of UP to access high quality Internet.
Prime Minister's Office
English rendering of Prime Minister’s Opening Remarks at the India-Finland Virtual Summit
Excellency,
Namaskar!
Many thanks for your remarks.
Excellency,
I offer my heartfelt condolences on behalf of India for the loss of lives in Finland from COVID-19. Under your leadership, Finland has efficiently handled this pandemic. I congratulate you for that.
Excellency,
During this pandemic, India has taken care of its domestic front as well as the needs of the world. Last year, we sent medicines and other essential materials to more than 150 countries. And, recently, we have supplied more than 58 million doses of vaccines made in India to about 70 countries. I want to assure you that we will continue to support the entire humanity to our potential.
Excellency,
Both Finland and India believe in a rules-based, transparent, humanist and democratic global order. Both the countries have strong cooperation in areas like technology, innovation, clean energy, environment, education, etc. All sectors will also be very important for global economic recovery in the post-COVID period. Finland is a global leader in the field of clean energy, and is also an important partner in India. And whenever you expressed concerns about the climate, I sometimes tell our friends jokingly that we have done so much injustice to nature and nature is so angry that today all of us human beings are being forced to hide our faces behind masks. We have set ambitious goals for achieving climate objectives in India. In renewable energy, we have set a target of 450 GW installed capacity by 2030. We have also taken initiatives such as the International Solar Alliance  and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure  to enhance international cooperation. I urge Finland to join ISA and CDRI. These international institutions will benefit greatly from the expertise of Finland.
Excellency,
Finland also holds a leading position in the fields of new and emerging technologies, digital infrastructure, education and skill development. We have the potential for cooperation in all these areas. I am happy that today we are declaring a new partnership in the fields of ICT, mobile technology and digital education. Our Education Ministry is also launching a high level dialogue. I hope that today's summit will further accelerate the development of India-Finland relations.
Excellency,
This is our first meeting today. Wish we could meet in person. But since last one year, we are all becoming accustomed to meeting virtually with the help of technology. But I am happy that we will soon have the opportunity to meet during the India-EU Summit in Portugal and the India-Nordic Summit in Denmark. I also invite you to visit India. Please come to India whenever it is convenient for you. Let me conclude my opening remarks. We will discuss more in the next session.
Many thanks.
DISCLAIMER: This is the approximate translation of PM’s speech. Original speech was delivered in Hindi.
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting
NFDC declared winner under Miniratna Category by Ministry of MSME for exemplary work amongst CPSEs for promotion of SC/ST entrepreneurs
National Film Development Corporation of India has been selected as Winner under the Miniratna Category  by Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises . This has been done as part of endeavour by Ministry of MSME to felicitate select CPSEs to recognize their exemplary work towards promotion of SC/ST entrepreneurs. The performance parameters for the same were procurement from SC/ST entrepreneurs, number of vendor development programmes for SC/ST and number of SC/ST entrepreneurs benefitted as per data uploaded on Sambandh Portal.
About NFDC
National Film Development Corporation Ltd. , incorporated in the year 1975, was formed by the Government of India with the primary objective of planning and promoting an organized, efficient, and integrated development of the Indian film industry. NFDC has so far funded / produced over 300 films. These films, in various Indian languages, have been widely acclaimed and have won many national and international awards. The primary activities of NFDC are Film Production – 100% finance for debutant directors & Co-Production with Foreign & Indian Film Makers, Promoting Indian Films at various International Film Festivals and markets in India and abroad, NFDC’s Film Bazaar has now become one of the leading platform for promoting & showcasing Indian cinema to the world. NFDC is now positioned as a 360-degree integrated media service provider for the creation and dissemination of advertising communication across various electronic platforms. Ministry of I&B has taken the lead with a long-term objective of positioning and promoting India as a preferred destination for filmmakers across the world, by setting up the Film Facilitation Office , which is housed under the aegis of NFDC.
President's Secretariat
President of India Confers Honorary Rank of General of The Indian Army on General Prabhu Ram Sharma
The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, conferred the Honorary Rank of General of the Indian Army on General Prabhu Ram Sharma, Chief of the Army Staff, Nepali Army at a special Investiture Ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan today .
Click here to see the citation
Ministry of Labour & Employment
A responsible Chowkidar is a must for a Secure Nation- Santosh Gangwar
Minister of State  for Labour and Employment Shri Santosh Kumar Gangwar said that Private Security Industry is among one of the five top most employment generating sectors in the country while addressing Private Security Industry Conclave organized by FICCI. Approximately 50 lakh security personnels are safeguarding our Factories, Banks, Offices and Apartments and doing great service to the nation.
He further said that with the passage of Code on Wages by Parliament on August 02, 2019, Central Government has given the right of minimum wages to approximately 50 crore unorganized sector workers and the same will be applicable to security guards also. Wages of security guards vary from Rs. 5,000 to 13,000 in various states. To do away with these discrepancies, we have made provision of National Minimum floor wage and no State Government can fix the wages below this floor wage.
Shri Gangwar said that Occupational Safety, Health and Working Condition Code have been introduced in Lok Sabha on July 23, 2019 to improve working conditions and safety of the employees. We have also launched Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan Dhan  Scheme to bring all the workers under the cover of Social Security. With a monthly contribution of Rs. 55 to Rs. 200, workers can get a monthly pension of Rs. 3,000 after attaining the age of 60 years. The Minister appealed all the employers of the security agencies to motivate security guards to take benefit from PMSYM. He assured that Central Government is working on the principle of ‘Minimum Government, Maximum Governance’ and we are using technology to make life easy for everyone. Steps to promote single license, single registration and single return in place of multiple license, registration and returns will definitely promote ‘Ease of Living’ and ‘Ease of doing Business’.
Ministry of Agriculture &
Farmers Welfare
SHIFT TOWARDS ZERO BUDGET NATURAL FARMING
Evidences from implementation of Zero Budget Natural Farming  from various parts of the country indicates that shift towards ZBNF helps in substantially lowering the cost. Being a chemical free system based on natural nutrient cycling, it ensures safe food and soil health restoration.
Government is promoting Natural Farming through Bhartiya Prakritik Krishi Padhati  introduced during 2020-21 as a sub scheme of Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana  for the promotion of traditional indigenous practices including Natural Farming. The scheme mainly emphasises on exclusion of all synthetic chemical inputs and promotes on-farm biomass recycling with major stress on biomass mulching, use of cow dung-urine formulations and other plant-based preparations. Under BPKP, financial assistance of Rs 12200/ha for 3 years is provided for cluster formation, capacity building and continuous handholding by trained personnel, certification and residue analysis. Until now, under natural farming an area of 4.09 lakh ha area has been covered and a total fund of Rs. 4980.99 lakh has been released to 8 States across the country. The State –wise details of funds released and area under BPKP is given at below.
Annexure- I
The State –wise details of funds released and area covered under Bhartiya Prakritik Krishi Padhthi 
|
|
Sl. No.
|
|
States
|
|
Released date
|
|
Area in Ha
|
|
Amount released 
|
|
1.
|
|
Andhra Pradesh
|
|
30.09.20
|
|
100000
|
|
750.00
|
|
2.
|
|
Chhattisgarh
|
|
09.12.20
|
|
85000
|
|
1352.52
|
|
3.
|
|
Kerala
|
|
30.09.20
|
|
84000
|
|
1336.60
|
|
4.
|
|
Himachal Pradesh
|
|
24.12.20
|
|
12000
|
|
286.42
|
|
5
|
|
Jharkhand
|
|
02.12.20
|
|
3400
|
|
54.10
|
|
6.
|
|
Odisha
|
|
02.02.21
|
|
24000
|
|
381.89
|
|
7.
|
|
Madhya Pradesh
|
|
16.02.21
|
|
99000
|
|
787.64
|
|
8.
|
|
Tamil Nadu
|
|
16.02.21
|
|
2000
|
|
31.82
|
|
Total
|
|
|
|
409400
|
|
4980.99
This information was given by the Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shri Narendra Singh Tomar in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.
Ministry of Tourism
Ministry of Tourism organises 23rd webinar titled ‘BICYCLE TOURS - Exploring India at the pace of a pedal’ under "Dekho Apna Desh" series
To showcase the medley of India’s geographical diversity and cultural richness, Ministry of Tourism’s Dekho Apna Desh Webinar, on 23rd May 2020 titled ‘BICYCLE TOURS - Exploring India at the pace of a pedal’ offered an immersive 360 degree view of India through bicycle tours and showcased how slow pace of a pedal is the best way to soak in every aspect of this diverse region and connect with the people, its culture and way of life.
The 23rd session of the Dekho Apna Desh webinar series on 23rd May 2020 moderated by Ms. Rupinder Brar , Additional Director General , Ministry of Tourism and was presented by Mr. Gurudeep Ramakrishna & Ms. - Ms.Tejaswini Gopalaswamy .
The presentation, divided into 5 broad sections, focused on ‘Why bicycle travel?’, videos representing a virtual journey through India’s diverse landscapes, ‘Bicycle 101’ highlighting the core important things about the bicycle travel like how to get started with the fascinating interest of cycling and tips for beginners, planning a bicycle tour including women travellers in bicycle tours and the 5 major popular bicycle tours itineraries in India namely Manali to Leh Bike expedition,Eastern Himalayas: Sikkim & Arunachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, South India, Hampi & Badami.
Wellbeing cannot be attributed to cycling alone, the bicycle as a means for exploration and travel connects the riders to nature, people and diverse experiences they take on while reaching their destination. The slow pace and constant pedaling to keep the bicycle moving is a mental and physical reminder to be present and engaged at every moment. The cycle becomes a catalyst to soak in new perspectives and be truly engaged with the region. These experiences combined together are meditative. After all meditation is a consistent practice to use techniques like mindfulness and awareness to achieve mental clarity, and emotional stability.
Gears on a bicycle are very akin to the gears in an automobile and they help us reduce the stress on the human engine  as we pedal about exploring places. With varying terrain, using gears on the bicycle can help the cyclist reduce the stress on her/his legs and makes it easier when climbing up hills or steep inclines and also generate speed while going downhill or even when cycling in flat terrain.
The Deko Apna Desh Webinar series is presented by Ministry of Tourism with active technical support from National e-Governance Division  created by the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology  for effective citizen engagement and communication with all stakeholders using the digital experience platform.
The sessions of webinars are now available on the https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbzIbBmMvtvH7d6Zo_ZEHDA/featured and also on all social media handles of Ministry of Tourism, Government of India.
The next Dekho Apna Desh Webinar on 26th May 2020 – 1100-1200 hrs. is ‘Culture & Tourism – Two sides of Goan economy’ To register click https://bit.ly/2XqNdad
Ministry of Steel
‘The automation in the steel industry is the need of the hour- Shri Atul Bhatt, CMD
RINL - launches “Open challenge programme  2.0’
At a program organized at RINL, Shri Atul Bhatt, CMD, RINL launched ‘Open challenge progam 2.0’, online today. The program is the second program in the series of OCP programs that are being launched by Kalpataru-CoE . This open challenge program is for selecting the startups in the field of Industry 4.0 technologies.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri Atul Bhatt said that “the automation in the steel industry is the need of the hour and the scope of growth of automation and robotics is immense. The equipment developed by the startups will give returns on investment by RINL very fast as they help in energy savings and will also help in running the process safely”, Shri Atul Bhatt added.
The project, CoE  on Industry 4.0, is being taken up jointly by STPI , MeitY, RINL, and Govt. of AP. This is expected to make India ‘Atamanibhar’ in the field of Industry 4.0 technologies.
The CoE will have an IIOT  lab, an Industrial Automation Lab with AI & ML  and AR & VR  lab. It will also have one more industrial automation Lab with Robotics and Drone and a third Industrial automation lab with Robotics and 3D printing.
The CoE will incubate around 175 start-up companies over a period of 5 years. 50 startup companies will be incubated in physical mode and 125 companies will be incubated in Virtual mode.
The start-up companies along with industry mentors will work on the problems of RINL and other industries in and around like HPCL, NTPC, BARC, HSY and BHEL.
Shri CVD Ram Prasad & Dr. Suresh Batha informed how STPI and STPINEXT through their Centre of Entrepreneurship and NGIS  is encouraging startups to grow.
Smt. Vyshali Sagar, Program manager AWS  informed how AWS is helping startups to develop products/solutions using AWS. She informed that they are very passionate about working with startups and providing them with value.
The program was also graced by Shri A.K. Bagchi, Director  & additional charge Director  RINL and Member of PMG- Kalapataru, Sri CVD Ramprasad, Director STPI Hyderabad and COO STPINEXT, Dr. Suresh Batha, Additional Director and Officer In charge, STPI Visakhapatnam.